The ties that bind auditors
Accountants are under attack from all sides, and say their survival is under threat. No such luck
FOR a business that is still seen as a byword for dullness, accountancy has had a tumultuous few years. First, the “Big Eight” global firms became the “Big Five” as the industry consolidated. Now they are in the unusual position of taking on America's Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), which is proposing changes that could lead the Big Five to break up. Internationally, accountants find themselves blamed for contributing to past financial crises, and pressed to help avert future ones. They even, bizarrely, have run into a disagreement with the legal profession. Bean-counting is not what it used to be.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “The ties that bind auditors”
From the August 12th 2000 edition
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